Pages

My Craft Space

This is quite a long and photo-heavy post so please do make a brew and pull up a chair! I'll also keep this as a page rather than a post so I can add any updates later :)

May 2017

After crafting from my lounge table for years and being in a disorganised state of chaos I've finally utilised an area in my hall which is also a much more handy distance from my craft stash cupboard which has always lived out here.

It's not a huge area but I measured up and was able to purchase some furniture from Ikea...the Micke Workstation which consists of the desk and add-on unit, and the Alex nine drawer chest.

You can see what my hall looked like beforehand in this post here. I've always liked to have my hall free of clutter so that it looked nice for anyone visiting but I decided that my need for a proper craft space was greater and as long as I keep it tidy (!!!) it shouldn't be too intimidating in my small flat. The ceiling and walls have been painted (the wall paint colour is 'Creamy Mint' by Valspar if anyone is interested) but I still have the gloss to do. I couldn't wait to get my furniture in place so I'll have to shift it to paint the gloss at some point! :D

So, I'll take you on a tour...

This is the view as you walk up from my front door. My existing cupboard is on the right beside another built-in cupboard (housing boring things like general household junk, vacuum cleaner, etc!) and the desk you can see on the left. I had to go for the Micke desk as it's shallow enough to allow the loft ladder to come down from the hatch above.

This is the reverse view looking from the kitchen down towards the front door. I've bought the plastic floor mat to stop the carpet getting ruined by the chair and to hopefully save it in case I drop anything! At the moment I'm just using a chair from my lounge/diner but I'm on the lookout for a permanent one eventually.

Here's my lovely new workstation!

I've spent lots of time making it look pretty and not much time actually crafting yet but I've been through my whole stash and found a home for everything in places which I think will work well.

Along the top shelf are some planters I picked up from Morrisons (a UK supermarket for those who aren't familiar) for £2 each, very similar to the white ones from Ikea that I've seen many fellow crafters using. In these I'm storing my Zig markers, a mixture of other markers such as Staedtler Triplus Fineliners, Stabilo pens and Gelly Roll, and also my washi tape. The faux lavender and succulents are some I picked up from Sainsbury's (I like supermarket shopping!) which I use for photo staging. Behind my Big Shot I keep notepads and a book detailing which products I've used in case I'm not posting it straight away, and a little bowl for collecting bits and bobs as I create. On the centre shelf is a little cage container (bought recently from Matalan) which I'll probably use to store new goodies in and cards which need to be bagged up, personalised with my stamp, etc. Behind my craft mat from left to right are two notebooks, one in which I record the challenges I follow and the closure dates, and another which I want to use to make notes of different techniques I want to try. I have another planter containing various pens, pencils and brushes, the cable hole in the back of the desk is the new home for my heat gun, another planter which holds my tools such as scissors, water sprayers, pokey tool, palette knife, etc., my Little Miss Blogger mug which was a gift from my Bestie at Christmas, a little tin which contains things such as spare craft knife blades, pencil sharpener and eraser, a cute folding container I purchased at The Works which houses the likes of adhesives, Glossy Accents, powder tool and tweezers, then on the far right is my roll of 3M tape.

And then on the magnetic backing board and along the top in photo clips I've got lovely things I've received from friends and blogging buddies. The round flowery magnets were very inexpensive and purchased from Sainsbury's.

I use the long drawer along the front of the desk to store my MISTIs (yay, I now have the original one too!), my trimmers, scoreboards and some blending mats.

The drawer to the left I use to store regularly used items such as baby wipes, kitchen roll, rulers, most used ink pads, scrubber pad, stamp shammy (which I keep in the blue container which is actually meant for storing crackers!) and my personalised stamp.

In the desk cupboard I've got some files at the bottom (which are currently empty but bought in the sale in WH Smith) behind which I have my teeny sewing machine (which I really must use!). On the top two shelves I have various binders containing: my stencils (you can find details of my stencil storage here), coin pockets ready for me to create some colour swatches, print-outs of some of my digi stamps and a colouring book. Next to my bin I have a painting board which sits nicely between the desk leg and drawer unit. Unfortunately, there are no electrical sockets near my desk so I'm having to use an extension lead but it's not an issue.

On top of my Alex unit I have my printer and the box contains my embossing folders. This box is way too big for them but all the others I looked at were too small so I got this one and will store something else in there at some point. It also matches the boxes on top of my main cupboard. There was some unused space behind the printer so I keep all my faux flowers in a vase there which I use for my photography.

Top drawer of my Alex - This has to be my favourite drawer! I love my Distress Inks and it looks so pretty. I also store my blending tools, spare sponges and my Ink Dusters in here.

Seventh drawer - I keep my dies in here, stored in DoCrafts Papermania binders. Not the best use of this drawer but I need them to hand so didn't want them in my main cupboard.

Eighth drawer - This is where I keep my watercolour paints, coloured pencils, Inktense pencils and a few accessories such as masking fluid, paper stumps and water brushes.

Bottom drawer - pretty boring, just envelope and card bag storage.

Moving on to my main cupboard.

This is a Billy bookcase from Ikea with the half glazed doors. I bought this a few years ago and didn't want it as an open bookcase in my hall. You my have noticed the lampshade in front of it. The right hand door does very slightly come into contact with it and MOST of the time I remember but it has got whacked on more than one occasion! lol Luckily it's plastic!

Along the top of my bookcase I have some storage boxes I bought from Dunelm which I use to store my completed cards. I bought the smaller boxes to display my cards when I had a card sale.

The top shelf houses some of my stamps which I store alphabetically by manufacturer in Avery Elle pockets and in InterDesign Fridge Binz.

On the shelf below I store all my cardstock and have made card some card dividers to keep it all separated. Also on this shelf are items such as fun foam, acetate, vellum, mulberry paper, shrink plastic, masking paper, etc. Basically, anything in sheet form.

On the third shelf on the right is box containing my patterned papers and also some 12 x 12 cardstock that won't fit on the shelf above. Then on the left I have my ProMarkers and FlexMarkers stored in my homemade budget storage, see previous post here. It would have been great to have these near my work area but the desk just isn't big enough. Behind those I store a few random bits and pieces (the vertical sheets are coloured fun foam), and items I don't use very often such as my gilding flakes kit, eyelet setter kit, my Xyron sticker makers, Whispers marker pens, and would you believe it....my light box! Yes, I still have one! I still have a few brass stencils so I'll keep it for as long as I have room for it! lol

On shelf four I have the rest of my alphabetical stamp storage. The larger box contains larger stamp sets, cling stamps and unmounted stamps. Hopefully I'll find a better way to store these at some point. On the right hand side at the back I have a box containing loads of 3D foam pads which I really must use up before I buy another big roll, my Avery Elle stamp pockets, and the two Gorjuss tins were a gift from my friend and are currently empty.

On the shelf below I've got my Uniko and Stampin' Up stamps in acrylic DVD containers by Muji, but these have been discontinued which is why I've since bought the Fridge Binz. Under these containers are boxes containing some wooden stamps, punches (not many, I've condensed my stash right down now that I use dies), chalks, and behind are some stickers/toppers and miscellaneous bits such as magnetic tape, binding rings, bow maker...things I wanted to keep but had no idea where to put!

And finally, on the bottom shelf from left to right I have some zip files containing offcuts, incomplete cards, bloopers, etc., the purple binder holds brads and eyelets, the drawer unit contains gilding flakes, foil, buttons, various embellies, stickers and rub-ons. Then to the right I have ribbon and twine storage and a couple of empty containers.

So there you have it, and if you're still with me thank you so much for reading to the end. I hope you've enjoyed this little tour of my new craft space, and please feel free to ask if you have any questions about my storage.

I've thoroughly enjoyed re-organising everything and clearing the decks in my lounge. It will be lovely to have that space back too, to use as it should be used. I've still got some organising to do such as creating swatches and transferring stamps into pockets, etc. but on the whole I'm pretty much sorted now. Happy days :)

19 comments:

I love your space, Anita. Your hard work has really paid off. I love all your organisation, everything is so neat and tidy. I especially love your desk! I hope you enjoy creating in your new space :) xx

Mwah! Mwah! Mwah! I thoroughly enjoyed the tour, Anita! You are a girl after my own heart with your brilliant efficient organization! You are going to LOVE having this dedicated space and having your lounge back!! Everything looks fantastic! Enjoy!! Hugs, Darnell

This space looks wonderful Anita! So organized and coordinated! I'm lucky enough to have a small room but it's a hotch potch with an old wardrobe, homemade desk and an assortment of containers! I think trying to remember where everything is keeps our minds active and healthy lol! Cathy x

Pure interior design! So calming and inviting! I love it! Bravo you! May I ask about your inks? Are the mini pads of inks fine to use? I bought a couple of dew-drop size Memento pads once and they were really dry and unusable. I think I may be able to take some ideas from your craft space that I can use, thank you!

Hi Anne. I've never had a problem with the mini inks. I mainly buy them as they take up less space and are much more affordable to get a big selection. I was a pigment ink girl for many years so it took me a while to get used to dye inks and how they often stamp splotchy before they are dry. I find the Altenew inks more juicy than the Memento but there are lots more dye inks on the market if you find Memento aren't working for you. Glad you found some inspiration from my tour too :) x

WOW, Anita ! What a beautiful space you have ! Love how everything is so well organised either on your desk or in the drawers and the cupboard ! You were already very creative but I'm sure you are going to be even more ! My fav picture is the one with all your Distress inks, it is so beautiful to see all these squares of bright colours ! Congrats for the beautiful work you have done here ! And now enjoy !Hugs xx

Wow! Got here at last and swooning over your incredible craft space makeover! You've worked your little socks off but it's just perfect, clean, fresh, inviting and soooooo organised! You've way too much stuff for a little space mind but you've packed it in perfectly! Loving those inky drawers 😝 what a fabulous kaleidoscope of colour! Just waiting for my invite now! 🤗 Wishing you many happy hours of crafting and enjoy! X

What an amazing space! I LOVE it! I also have the Micke desk from Ikea but it looks nothing like yours :) What a great idea you made for your markers. I'm going to give that a try...have to look around for similar boxes. Thank you for sharing your space!

Thank you so much for visiting today. I would love for you to leave some feedback, your comments are always appreciated.

In line with new Data Protection legislation (GDPR) by commenting you do so in the knowledge that your name & comment are visible to all who visit this blog and thereby consent to the use of that personal information for that specific purpose.

Hello

I'm Anita, welcome to my blog. I love being creative and have been making cards since about 2005. Neet & Crafty is my little online place to share my creations with you and I hope you will find some inspiration.

Thanks for visiting.

Neets x

Visit My Shop (UK and overseas shipping)

Find Me Here

Get In Touch

craftyneet@gmail.com

A Polite Request

I share my creations on my blog for inspiration purposes only. Please respect my wishes and do not copy for submission to competitions, magazines, etc. or for your own personal financial gain.